1. Statement of the Technical Field
The invention concerns systems implementing methods for determining a reference signal at any location along a transmission media.
2. Description of the Related Art
There are many systems and applications known to those having ordinary skill in the art that can benefit from an ability to determine a reference signal at any location along a transmission media. Such systems include, but are not limited to, radar systems and communication systems. For example, a conventional wireless communication system typically includes a system controller, a plurality of antenna controllers, and a plurality of antenna elements (e.g., a plurality of dish antennas). Each of the antenna elements is communicatively coupled to the system controller and a respective one of the antenna controllers via a cable assembly. During transmission and reception, each antenna element converts electrical signals into electromagnetic waves, and vice versa. The phases of the signals to be transmitted from and received by the antenna elements can be shifted as a result of environmental effects on hardware components of the system controller, hardware components of the antenna controllers, and the cable assemblies connecting the antenna elements to the controllers. These phase shifts typically result in the steering of the radiated main beam in the wrong direction. In order to overcome the various limitations of the communication system, it needs to implement a beamforming solution that counter acts the phase shifts resulting from environmental effects on the hardware components and cables thereof.